


Summer fling

by SugdenLovesDingle



Series: Robert week 2020 [6]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Flirting, Idiots in Love, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:41:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26072830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SugdenLovesDingle/pseuds/SugdenLovesDingle
Summary: Robert week 2020Day 6 - the lost yearsWhat if Robert had met Aaron during his time away, instead of the whites?
Relationships: Aaron Dingle/Robert Sugden
Series: Robert week 2020 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1883644
Comments: 6
Kudos: 98





	Summer fling

**Author's Note:**

> I suppose this isn't really about the lost years... but in my mind Robert lived with/near Annie for at least a while before he came back, so that's kind of what I went with here.

The first time Robert saw Aaron he’d been in _lust_ immediately. They were in a club in Spain, it was packed, he might have been a little drunk and Aaron was just drinking at the bar instead of dancing with the rest of the crowd, but he looked gorgeous, and Robert wanted him.

Just as he was planning how to make that happen, he noticed some guy trying to pull him onto the dancefloor. Broad shouldered, too tight t shirt. Robert hated him.

Thankfully, the guy gave up pretty easily and the coast was clear for Robert to make his move. He took a second to psych himself up and made his way over to where the guy was standing.

“You know, most people go to clubs to dance.” He said and grinned, hoping the flirting wouldn’t come back to bite him… or punch him in the face.

“Maybe I’m not like most people.”

“Clearly. Or you wouldn’t be coming to a club to drink overpriced beer. There are plenty of bars where you can get a cheaper drink.”

“Why are you so interested in my spending habits? How do you know I’m not really rich and just like drinking expensive beer in clubs?”

Robert laughed. He liked the guy’s sense of humour.

“Just slumming it with us common folk eh?”

“Got that right.”

“And who is he then? Your bodyguard? Servant? Toy boy? Secret lover?” Robert asked, nodding at the guy in the tight t-shirt busting some moves on the dancefloor.

“Just a mate. Why? Are you interested? Do you want me to set you up with him?”

“I wouldn’t say I’d want setting up with _him_.”

“Really now?” the guy quirked an eyebrow at him, a smile tugging at his lips. “Do you want another overpriced beer?”

Robert downed the last of his drink.

“Sure, I just finished mine anyway.”

The guy laughed and turned around to try and get the barman’s attention over the music. Only he either ignored them or really didn’t see them. Robert guessed it to be a bit of both. He seemed more interested in the cleavage of the cute brunette he was talking to than serving people.

“Wait.” Robert said and hopped up on the bar, swung his legs over, and jumped off on the other side.

“Do you work here or something?”

“Or something.”

“What? Is this your club? Do you own this place?”

Robert laughed.

“I wish. I know the owner. I helped his kids pass their maths exams. My gran knows his mother and sort of… recommended me.” He shrugged. “I needed a job and his brats needed a tutor that wouldn’t quit.”

“I’m learning so much about you.”

Robert put two bottles on the bar and climbed back over.

“And yet I still don’t know anything about you.”

“You know I’m crazy rich, isn’t that enough?”

“I think I’d like to know a name. Calling you mister money bags isn’t very sexy.”

The guy laughed and held out his hand.

“I’m Aaron. And you? Mister math genius?”

“Robert will do.” He shook the guy’s hand and took a swig of his drink.

He looked Aaron up and down, he was dressed head to toe in black. Black skinny jeans and a tight black long sleeve shirt hugging his body in all the right places. It would be boring on anyone else but Robert decided it suited him.

“Enjoying the view?”

“Definitely.” Robert said with an appreciative nod. “Just… one question…”

“What?”

“Aren’t you hot in those clothes?”

Aaron gave him a confused frown.

“I don’t know. I’m alright I suppose… Why? Am I sweating? Do I smell?”

“No, I just think you’d feel better without them.” A smug grin spread over Robert’s face as he took another drink.

Aaron laughed.

“Does that line ever work?”

“I don’t know. You tell me.”

“You’re kind of cocky, do you know that?”

“It’s been said. But you didn’t answer my question.”

Aaron took a drink and seemed to consider his options for a moment.

“Buy me another drink and ask me again in an hour and we’ll see.”

Robert grinned. He liked a challenge.

They chatted for a while and Robert discovered Aaron was originally from the same area as he was.

“Yorkshire born and bred, me. York. But I’m thinking of moving to Leeds.”

“We could be neighbours then. I’ve lived here for a few years now but given the right incentive… I could be persuaded to go back to Leeds.” Robert said and got a thrill from the mischievous in Aaron’s eyes.

“I suppose there could be worse things than walking out the door in the morning and seeing you.”

“Or maybe opening your eyes and seeing me next to you?”

“Who says I’d let you stay the night?” Aaron said, trying and failing to sound indifferent.

“Well… I don’t like to brag…” Robert started and Aaron snorted. “I don’t like to brag but I’m pretty good at… things you’d do in a bed.”

“Good thing you don’t like bragging then.” Aaron said and they both laughed.

“I’ll prove it to you if you let me.”

“You’re impossible.” Aaron replied fondly, stepped closer to Robert, took his drink from him, and put it on the bar. “But… I have some hidden talents too, you know.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

He put his hands on Robert’s chest and moved them up to his neck, slowly pulling his face closer to his own and brushing their lips together. He was teasing him and Robert was going out of his mind, hating and loving it at the same time.

Every time Robert tried to deepen the kiss, Aaron pulled back with a wicked grin on his face.

“Is this your special skill then?” Robert asked after another barely there kiss. “Driving people crazy?”

Aaron chuckled.

“I just like to take my time.” He leaned in for another kiss, starting slow and soft again but letting Robert take control this time.

It quickly started to get a little inappropriate for a public place with hands finding their way under clothes and Robert pulling Aaron flush against him by his belt.

“What would you say if I told you I had a room with a bed and a balcony to watch the sunrise just down the road?” Robert asked, slightly out of breath.

“I’d say lead the way.”

Robert dragged Aaron out of the club and through the streets of Barcelona, never more glad he’d let his gran convince him to rent the flat in the city centre instead of something nearer to where she lived.

“Nice place.” Aaron commented when they’d reached Robert’s flat and Robert had managed to open the door to let them in.

“Yeah? You should see the bedroom.”

The next morning Robert woke up with the sun shining in his face. His mind really hadn’t been on closing the blinds the night before and he severely regretted that by now. Only getting out of bed to close them was even less appealing so instead he just rolled onto his other side, coming face to face with Aaron.

“What time is it?” he mumbled, face buried in the pillow. Robert thought he looked adorable.

“Why? Do you have somewhere to be?”

“No. Just wondering if it’s still early enough to watch that sunrise.” Aaron said with a sleepy smile that Robert couldn’t help but kiss off his face.

When they finally made it out of bed, Robert made them coffee and some eggs and toast.

“Sorry, it’s not much… I wasn’t exactly expecting company. I haven’t done any shopping.”

“It’s fine.” Aaron bit into a piece of toast. “I’m not much of a breakfast type anyway. I like a fry up every now and then… but I usually just have toast or cereal.”

“Next time I’ll make you a fry up then.” Robert decided.

“Next time? Who says there will be a next time?”

“You seemed to enjoy yourself pretty well last night.” Robert grinned and leaned over the small table for a kiss.

“But you’ll never make a better fry up than me.” Aaron informed him.

They spent the rest of the day together and eventually met up with Aaron’s friend Ed, at the hostel they were staying at.

“So… how long are you in town for?” Robert asked, not really wanting to know the answer, because the last thing he wanted was to say goodbye to Aaron.

“I don’t know yet.” Aaron shrugged. “We were supposed to go on this euro tour and finish in Calais and then get the ferry home in a few weeks… but I kind of like it here.”

Days turned into weeks and Robert felt himself falling further for Aaron with each day passing, and he hoped Aaron felt the same. They had fun together, even outside the bedroom, and he’d even started calling Aaron his boyfriend.

Though only in his head.

He hadn’t yet dared to sit Aaron down and talk about what they were.

They were exclusive, he knew that much (he’d witnessed Aaron turning down guys first hand) and they spent most of their free time together. Especially after Ed had gotten a call from a French rugby club offering a place on the team and left.

Aaron had convinced the owner of the hostel he stayed at to let him work for room and board (and maybe a little extra) and he seemed to be planning on staying around for a while.

About six weeks after their first meeting, the two of them were taking a walk on the beach. They’d both just gotten off a late night shift and the world around them was asleep.

With nothing or nobody to distract them Robert was planning on finally asking Aaron to officially be his boyfriend.

Only the other man was quiet and distracted.

“Is everything alright?” Robert asked after Aaron barely responded to the story he’d just told.

“Yeah, yeah, sorry… I was miles away.”

“I noticed…”

Aaron quickened his pace a little so he could get in front of Robert and took a deep breath as he took both of Robert’s hands in his.

“You are amazing… and these past few weeks have been… the best I’ve had in a long time. Maybe ever.”

“But…” Robert prompted, a feeling of dread washing over him. “You’re dumping me?”

Aaron bit his lip.

“It’s… complicated.”

“What is?”

“I have to go back to England…”

“Wait, what? Why? Go back permanently?”

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I mean, I don’t know.” Aaron said, frustrated and let go of Robert’s hands. “My mum rang me a few days ago.”

“Ok…”

“She co-owns a pub but her business partner is selling her share in the place because her health has taken a turn for the worse.”

“Right. What does that have to do with you? Are you crazy rich after all?” Robert asked, attempting to lighten the mood.

“I wish. Would solve a lot of problems.”

“What’s going on then?”

“Her cousin wants to buy into the pub and she’s selling her shares in some other company to finance it… but it’s all kind of messy and well... long story short, she needs help running the bar until they can get the finances sorted and hire some more staff.”

“And that’s where you come in.”

“Yeah.”

Robert nodded.

“So when are you leaving?”

“Few days probably.”

“Ok.” Robert swallowed thickly. “I guess we better make the most of the time we have left then.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t be.” Robert said and kissed him. “I understand. Family is important and they need you right now.”

“It won’t be forever.”

“Exactly. And we can call and text and stuff.”

“Yeah and as soon as things calm down over there, I’ll come back.” Aaron promised.

A few days later Aaron left and Robert went straight to his gran’s house to wallow for a while.

He’d looked up flights to Leeds more than once but, then realised he didn’t know which pub Aaron’s family owned, and he didn’t want to bother Aaron by asking for the address.

They talked and texted often, and even the odd video call every now and then (which only made Robert miss Aaron more), but it just wasn’t the same as having Aaron there with him.

One morning, a few weeks after Aaron has left, Robert was sulking into his coffee while his gran opened the post.

“Oh. Victoria is getting married!” She said happily and turned the wedding invite over to show Robert.

“That’s nice.” He said and then noticed the date. “Bit short notice. It’s next week already.”

Annie turned the invite over again to see for herself.

“Oh it is. I bet that’s royal mail’s doing again. Things always take forever to get here from England.” She muttered, mostly to herself. “Flights are going to be so expensive now. But you should go, love, you can drive there. She’ll be pleased to see you.”

“I don’t know… maybe.”

“It’ll be good for you to get away for a bit and not mope around the city because that boy is gone.”

“I… you… What?!” Robert sputtered. He hadn’t told his gran what was going on and why he was so down, but clearly she’d figured it out anyway.

It took a few more days of Annie pressuring him before he gave in and packed up his car.

“I’ll take lots of pictures.” He promised his gran before he left.

The drive was long and boring, but the closer he got to Emmerdale, the more he was looking forward to seeing his sister again. It was a strange thought, his baby sister getting married, but if she was happy, and the guy treated her right, then he was happy for her.

He hadn’t told Vic he was coming and couldn’t wait to see her face when she saw him again. He just hoped she had a spare room, or Diane wouldn’t mind putting him up for a while, because he didn’t fancy spending all of his savings on the B&B.

He’d rather use the money to get a hotel in Leeds to surprise Aaron too. After he’d figured out which pub belonged to his family, that was.

As he drove into Emmerdale, he looked around and noticed everything mostly still looked the same after all these years. Some of the houses might have different residents by now, and the shop definitely wasn’t there when he’d last been there, but other than that, not much had changed.

He saw a banner on the pub saying “Congratulations Victoria & Adam” and decided that was as good a first stop as any.

After parking his car, he walked up to the pub and pulled open the outside door. He waited in the little hallway for a minute and smiled when he heard his sister’s voice.

“And then after the ceremony, we’ll all come here for drinks and snacks.”

“I still think you should’ve gone for dinner with all of your guests. Harriet would’ve let you use the village hall.” Diane argued.

“I know. But this is just more us.”

“Yeah I agree.” Robert pushed the door open and laughed when he saw the shocked faces of his sister and step mum. “Victoria, Diane, did you miss me?”

“Robert!” Vic all but launched herself at him and hugged him tight. “I didn’t know you were coming home!”

“My little sister is getting married, how could I not come back for that?”

“Are you back for good?”

“I don’t know yet. But for now, I just want to meet my brother in law to be, is he around?”

“He’s helping his mum up at the farm… but I’ll text him and tell him to get over here.” Vic said and dug around her purse for her phone.

“Can I get you a drink, pet?” Diane asked. “I don’t own this place anymore but I’m sure Aaron can get you a pint when he’s done changing the barrel.”

“Yeah alright. I’d like a pint please.”

Diane nodded and turned to the bar.

“Aaron, pet,” she called out. “Is everything alright back there?”

“Yeah it’s fine Diane, I’ll be right out!” came the reply and Robert nearly had a heart attack when he heard the voice.

“Aaron?!”

Diane gave him a funny look but Robert ignored her.

“Aaron is that you?”

About half a second later Aaron, his Aaron, appeared in the doorway leading to the backroom and the cellar.

“Robert?! What are you doing here?”

“Vic is my sister. I came back for the wedding!”

Aaron looked from Robert to Vic and back.

“Robert Sugden… I should’ve known. I feel so stupid now. I knew Vic had a brother called Robert but I just… never made the connection.”

“Do you two know each other?” Vic asked.

“Could say that.” Robert rounded the bar and kissed Aaron. “I’ve missed you.”

“I missed you too.” Aaron kissed him again and hugged him tightly “More than you know.”

“Well…” Diane said, watching the two men hug. “At least we won’t have to worry about finding wedding dates for you two.”

**Author's Note:**

> comments are ♥


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